Lead Lit Article Type: Try It
Results
Curricular Literacy: Rehearsal Time
Curriculum serves not just students; curricular materials also provide potential learning opportunities for the adults who teach them. —Ball & Cohen, 1996, as cited in Grossman & Thompson, 2004, p....
Micro-Wins: The Data Graphs Don’t Show
It can be daunting to look at the data charts and test scores. It is hard to see those red lines and dots running across the page in a straight...
Grow Your Own Confidence and Humility as a Coach
Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less. —Rick Warren Coaches are usually hired because they have extensive knowledge and experience. The trust that is...
Senior Send-Off
“Ms. Messenger!” I hear as I walk out of Costco. There stands former student Henry, now over 6 feet tall. We spend our two-minute conversation beaming and catching up. It...
Curricular Literacy: Learning When to Chef
Many teacher preparation programs have not sufficiently prepared new teachers to understand the importance of well-taught, high-quality curriculum on student learning, or how to recognize, select, revise or facilitate high-quality...
Curricular Literacy: What Can Teacher Candidates Learn from High-Quality Instructional Materials?
The truth is that teacher education programs often reinforce . . . a long-standing emphasis on “lesson-planning from scratch” over approaches that teach candidates how to recognize and skillfully use...
Beyond Compliance: A Framework for Supporting Literacy Engagement and Empowerment
“We should purchase a couple of books on ADHD, so that I can share them with my friends and they can understand what it’s like to be me.” This quote...
From Middle School to College: Finding a Reading Connection
We know that reading experiences shape the future. Stop and think about your early reading experiences. Likely you can conjure up some memories and trace them to the reading choices...
Using Picture Books to Launch Professional Learning Sessions
I have always been a voracious reader. Books were my friends in childhood (Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume), my therapists in my adult years (Separation...
Circle Up: Whole-School Read Alouds to Promote Student Wellness
Early in my first year as a librarian I was approached by our school social worker about an idea she had for classroom read alouds centered on wellness themes (kindness,...
Notebooking for Coach Wellness
As literacy coaches, we are charged with leading the learning of others, learning that is often embedded in a mesh of additional factors, including teachers' overall health and wellness, stress...
Bingo! Games to the Rescue
"Nobody knows how things will turn out, that's why they go ahead and play the game... You give it your all and sometimes amazing things happen, but it's hardly ever...
Tough Conversations
When I’m frustrated with someone, I tend to have long conversations in my head, picturing all the ways I could explain exactly how this person has annoyed me. I’m looking...
Embarking on a New Curriculum: What I Must Carry with Me
"The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change [their] future by merely changing [their] attitude." — attributed to Oprah Winfrey I am next in line to...
Coach-Principal Meeting Template
An Agenda Template to Streamline Principal-Coach Meetings Every administration and their building needs are different. For coaches, traveling between buildings can often feel like whiplash. The building goals are different....
Trying Something New
I hear that some people thrive on change. They get excited about new opportunities; they seek out ways to shake up their lives; they love the challenge of fitting themselves...
Thanks for the Feedback: Leaning Into Tricky Conversations
I finally had the class settled. The playground action outside our window had been hard to turn away from and caused playground behavior inside our learning space. After an interactive...
Work/Life Balance
I love summer. I love the sunshine, late nights, long hours with an old book, fresh air, my favorite soft T-shirts. Most of all, I love the freedom and the...
Art as a Restorative Teaching Practice
Art has always been a way for me to express myself. I’m not the best artist, but I enjoy doodling, drawing, and making things with my hands. As a young...
Gaining Confidence One Move at a Time
After I'd had a long afternoon of facilitating a professional development experience, a teacher approached me, saying, “There was something different about you today.” Oh no, I thought. Different how?...
Connecting with the Goals of the School Community
Remember, if people like it here, they'll come back. You treat every customer like a new friend. —Ms. Fortini to Eilis in the novel Brooklyn, by Colm Tóibín Background I...
